June 8th, 2009
(Photos of Valerie Clark, left, and Amber Lowe, right, by Drew Engelke)
TLU Sports Information
Contact: Tim Clark (830) 609-8691
For Immediate Release
June 8, 2009
TLU’s Clark, Lowe advance to Academic All-America ballot
SEGUIN, Texas – Texas Lutheran senior student-athletes Valerie Clark and Amber Lowe advanced to the 2008-09 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America ballot after claiming Academic All-District VI First Team honors in the Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country college division.
The college division of the Academic All-America program includes colleges and universities from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA. Only First Team selections advance to the national ballot for a chance to be selected as Academic All-Americans. District VI of the college division has colleges and universities from Texas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Arkansas, New Mexico and Louisiana.
University (NCAA Division I) and college division Academic All-America selections for women’s cross country and track and field will be announced June 19.
Lowe (Sugar Land/home school) and Clark (Salado/Salado H.S.) each earned First Team Academic All-District VI honors for a second consecutive year. Lowe and Clark held 4.0 and 3.87 grade point averages, respectively, at the time of their 2008-09 Academic All-America nominations.
Lowe was a Third Team Academic All-American in 2007-08. She lettered in cross country, track and field, and basketball in her four-year career with the Bulldogs. Named TLU's 2008-09 Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Lowe competed in 2008-09 on the women’s cross country team. She was in the Bulldogs' top seven for the ASC Championships and NCAA DIII South/Southeast Regional Meet.
In 2008, Lowe was a member of TLU's conference runner-up team at the ASC Track & Field Championships. In that meet, she ran the 800-meter dash for the first time that season and posted a third-place finish in the conference championships.
Lowe earned ASC Academic All-Conference honors in basketball, cross country and track and field in her athletics career.
A three-time Academic All-Conference selection, Clark was the 2008-09 American Southwest Conference Distinguished Scholar-Athlete award winner for women’s track and field. The Distinguished Scholar-Athlete Award is the conference’s top individual academic award for a women’s track and field athlete.
Clark lettered four years in track and field and was the 2008 champion in the 400 hurdles. She also was a member of the 2007 conference championship 4x400 relay team. Clark twice was an All-ASC performer at the ASC Championships.
Clark studied abroad in Spain and served as an intern at University of Texas School of Public Health. She graduated with honors from TLU in May and was accepted into University of Texas School of Public Heath.
The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) selects Academic All-America teams in 12 programs: football, women's volleyball, men's soccer, women's soccer, men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball, softball, men's track & field/cross country, women's track & field/cross country, men's at-large and women's at-large.
To be nominated for Academic All-District and Academic All-America honors, the student-athlete must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) for his/her career. No athlete is eligible until he/she has reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at the current institution.
2009 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District
Women’s Track/Cross Country Team
District 6
College Division
FIRST TEAM
Name School Dist. Yr. Hometown GPA Major
Haylee Allen HARDIN-SIMMONS VI Jr. Buffalo Gap, Texas 4.00 Education
D'Ann Arthur TRINITY (TEXAS) VI Sr. Colleyville, Texas 3.89 Biology
Valerie Clark TEXAS LUTHERAN VI Sr. Salado, Texas 3.87 Kinesiology
Angela Cuba DALLAS VI Jr. Holliday, Texas 3.80 History
Katy Grant HARDING VI Sr. Mustang, Okla. 4.00 Social work
Charlotte Heron OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN VI Sr. Southampton, England 4.00 Political science
Ashley Huston HARDIN-SIMMONS VI Sr. Buffalo Gap, Texas 3.72 Education
Michaela Krcova SOUTHERN ARKANSAS VI Jr. Trnava, Slovakia 4.00 Business administration / finance
Amber Lowe TEXAS LUTHERAN VI Sr. Sugar Land, Texas 4.00 Kinesiology
Vicky Schandevel HARDING VI Gr. Greer, S.C. 3.81 Spanish
University Division
FIRST TEAM
Name School Dist. Yr. Hometown GPA Major
Caitlin Clancy TULSA VI Jr. Tuscon, Ariz. 4.00 Mechanical engineering
Mikaela Johansson OKLAHOMA VI Sr. Stockholm, Sweden 4.00 Public relations
Amy Backel OKLAHOMA VI Jr. Dillsburg, Pa. 4.00 Civil engineering
Tara Diebold ARKANSAS VI So. Branson, Mo. 4.00 Communication disorders
Katie Stripling ARKANSAS VI Jr. Jonesboro, Ark. 3.94 Kinesiology
Whitney Kerth ARKANSAS-LITTLE ROCK VI Sr. Perryville, Ark. 4.00 Economics
Denise Bargiachi ARKANSAS VI Sr. Memphis, Tenn. 3.73 Journalism
Patience Knight TEXAS TECH VI Sr. San Antonio, Texas 3.96 Wildlife mgmt. / game management
Dana Mecke TEXAS-SAN ANTONIO VI Jr. Bulverde, Texas 3.95 Mechanical engineering
Eleanor "Lennie" Waite RICE VI Gr. Austin, Texas 3.84 Economics / psychology / mgr. stud.
SECOND TEAM
Name School Dist. Yr. Hometown GPA Major
Alex Becker TULSA VI Sr. Guelph, Ontario 3.58 Elementary education
Erin Bedell BAYLOR VI Jr. Plano, Texas 3.67 Health Science studies
Leslie Bourgeois NICHOLLS STATE VI Sr. Raceland, La. 3.37 Human performance / education
Heather Bullin TEXAS STATE VI Jr. Cedar Park, Texas 3.92 Exercise & sports science
Erica Clark HOUSTON BAPTIST VI So. Houston, Texas 4.00 Mathematics / business
Jannah Evans TEXAS STATE VI Jr. Lago Vista, Texas 3.72 Exercise & sports science
Katie Evans TEXAS STATE VI Jr. Helotes, Texas 3.55 International studies
Cheris Fletcher SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI VI Gr. Albany, Ga. 3.85 Architectural eng. / construction
Silje Fjortoft SOUTHERN METHODIST VI So. Orsta, Norway 3.87 German
Christina Graham TEXAS TECH VI Sr. El Paso, Texas 3.90 Pyschology
Samantha Henry LOUISIANA STATE VI Jr. Kingston, Jamaica 3.42 Accounting
Dorcus Kapkiai SE LOUISIANA VI So. Eldoret, Kenya 3.67 General studies
Anna Lyons LOUISIANA STATE VI Sr. Ruston, La. 4.00 Kinesiology
Catherine White ARKANSAS VI So. Roanoke, Va. 3.75 Food science